Some Western Boomtowns Buck the National Trend in Homeownership
The homeownership rate in the United States has declined steadily over the past decade, touching 50-year lows in early 2016. But some booming and still relatively affordable parts of the country are bucking the national trend, according to an analysis of 2015 American Community Survey data.
Current Population Survey 2016: Household Income Up, Poverty Down
Recently released data from the U.S. Census Bureau on household income and poverty offer some good news for American families overall, with positive potential impacts on housing.
Coming and Going: What Home Views Do, and Don’t, Reveal About Our Potential Moves
In fashion, as it has been famously said, you’re either in or you’re out. And real estate is often the same way in certain markets, with more people either looking to move in – based on their home searches on Zillow – or looking to move out.
Halfway through 2016, an all-too-familiar housing affordability story continues to shape the U.S. housing market. Incredibly low mortgage interest rates are helping make homeownership more affordable, despite relatively rapid home value growth. But renting a home is decidedly unaffordable, even as growth in rents slows down.
Zillow Housing Confidence Index: Homeowners Got Swagger, But Buyers Increasingly Discouraged
Homeowners have a lot of swagger in today’s market, and for good reason – home values are rising, demand is high and homes are selling very quickly. But the same trends helping to buoy homeowner confidence are also proving increasingly discouraging for potential buyers, particularly among current renters, a critical imbalance that could have important impacts on the market going forward.
Rent Affordability by Tier: High Rents Aren’t a Problem If You Earn Enough to Afford them
As growth in rents outpaces growth in incomes, rent affordability (the share of the typical American’s income that goes to rent) has steadily deteriorated over the past five years – from a historic average of 26 percent, to roughly 30 percent currently. But focusing only on medians can sometimes hide more than it reveals. In this case, there are sharply different trends at the top and at the bottom of the market.
July Case-Shiller Forecast: July’s Growth will be Slightly Slower than June
After several consecutive months of steady growth, the U.S. National Case-Shiller home price index is within striking distance of reaching its July 2006 peak levels, according to today’s June Case-Shiller data. According to Zillow’s July Case-Shiller forecast, the national index and both smaller 10 and 20-city indices look set to keep growing at a very similar rate, if ever-so-slightly slower, compared to the past few months.
July 2016 Market Report: Four Years of Recovery, Still 4+ Percent Left to Go
The median U.S. home value has risen on an annual basis in each month for the past four years – and still remains more than 4 percent below its pre-recession high.
Key Takeaways from the July Existing Home Sales Report
After a surprisingly buoyant spring and early summer, July existing home sales pulled back, falling 3.2 percent from June to 5.39 million units at seasonally-adjusted annual rate (SAAR) according to the National Association of Realtors.
